Who owns KIST?
KIST is owned by Cargills (Sri Lanka, CSE: CARG.N0000), which has owned the brand since 2002.[1]
This ownership is reported in official statements but has not yet been matched to a regulatory filing.
Key facts
- Current owner
- Cargills (Ceylon) PLC reported
- Owned since
- Previous owner
- None recorded
- Owner HQ
- 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka, Colombo
- Origin
- 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
- Category
- Beverages › Soft drinks › Juice & juice drinks
- Parent ticker
- CSE: CARG.N0000
- Last verified
- · 1 sources
About KIST
KIST was a maker of jams, cordials and sauces when Cargills bought the brand in 2002. The turnaround came from fruit nectars made with fruit grown in Sri Lanka, a category the company entered shortly after the acquisition and which turned KIST into the country's leading fruit-based beverage brand; energy drinks and carbonated drinks were added later. Its pure fruit juice range was relaunched with new packaging in the year to March 2026, and the brand still leads the sauces category. Much of the fruit is processed at a plant opened in Kilinochchi in 2013 to rebuild the northern agricultural economy after the war.
Ownership timeline of KIST
Where KIST sits in Cargills
Controlling ownership as of . Brands grouped under the entity that owns them; large groups are collapsed.
Open the full Cargills ownership tree →
Other brands owned by Cargills
Latest news about KIST
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Frequently asked questions
Who is the parent company of KIST?
The parent company of KIST is Cargills, a publicly listed company headquartered in Sri Lanka.
Is KIST Sri Lankan?
Yes. KIST originated in Sri Lanka and its owner, Cargills, is also headquartered in Sri Lanka.
Since when has Cargills owned KIST?
Cargills has owned KIST since 2002.
Is KIST still owned by Cargills?
Yes. As of 23 September 2026, KIST is still owned by Cargills. The ownership record was last checked against primary sources on that date.
Sources (1) & corrections
Last verified . Every ownership fact above is backed by one of these primary documents. Numbers in brackets in the text refer to this list.
- [1] Cargills (Ceylon) PLC Integrated Annual Report 2025/26 — Cargills (Ceylon) PLC, Annual report; retrieved 23 September 2026.
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